SBP governor satisfied with economic situation

KARACHI – Governor, State Bank of Pakistan Ashraf Mehmood Wathra on Thursday showed his confidence that the country’s economy was moving on right path and the loan from International Monetary Fund (IMF) would be repaid as per schedule.

Briefing media here at the State Bank’s Head Office, the SBP governor said the foreign exchange reserves of the country were at their highest.

He regretted that certain sections of the media had presented wrong picture of the country’s economy, and had given an impression of decrease in exports by taking into account only the exports figures of July 2016. “This is not fair.This is against ethics of media and the law,” he protested.

He explained that the exports proceeds in July 2016 remained low due to public holidays of Eidul Fitr.
However, he said, the total figure of the exports for 2015-16 was much better.

He attributed decline in exports to the global recession. “Exports from other countries in the region, including India, Indonesia, Malaysia have also dropped,” he argued.

He informed the media that more efforts were being taken to boost exports of the country. The SBP governor said that an international journal and the rating agencies had praised the economic progress made in Pakistan.He further said that restoration of peace and security was one of the factors behind improvement in the economic situation.

He also claimed that the inflation rate had come down and the economic growth had improved.